1. 6564BEJEWELLED
Cartier’s rich legacy and heritage extend beyond the exquisite jewels they
create. Through the words of the house’s regional marketing manager in
Middle East, Africa and India, Laurent Gaborit, we channel the legendary
Maison’s most prized moments in time, treasures and timeless pieces.
BY DESSIDRE FLEMING
THE CARTIER
CHRONICLES
W
hat started a long time ago, in the year 1847,
has today become a living heritage. Yes,
Cartier is that immortal glimmer that you
see on the horizon. Beyond all the fleeting
trends of fashion, the Maison forges precious
ties that transcend time and trousseau. We caught up with
Laurent Gaborit, the regional marketing manager—Cartier
Middle East, Africa and India, who shares a 13-and-a-half-year-
old relationship with the brand, at the recently held Cartier
‘Travel with Style’ Concours d’Elegance. He traced for us the
journey that Cartier embarked upon and spoke about some of
the most sought-after pieces of jewellery and watchmaking from
‘the king of jewellers and the jewellers of kings’.
Aficionados, take notes of excerpts from our conversation...
THE CARTIER EXPERIENCE
I have been lucky enough to have worked in different markets,
to have organised great events and to have met incredible people
through my time at Cartier. I have been working with the
Cartier headquarters in Taiwan, Korea, Greece, Italy, the Middle
CLOCKWISE:
THE AMULETTE DE
CARTIER PENDANT.
LAURENT GABORIT,
REGIONAL
MARKETING
MANAGER, CARTIER
- MIDDLE EAST,
AFRICA AND INDIA.
THE CARTIER JUSTE
UN CLOU BRACELET.
THECLEDECARTIER
TIMEPIECE.
THE TANK
AMERICAINE WATCH
FROM CARTIER.
COUNTER-
CLOCKWISE:
ON FACING PAGE:
THE TUTTI FRUITY
NECKLACE BY
CARTIER.
THE CARTIER
TIARA WORN BY
KATE MIDDLETON.
THE RONDE LOUIS
CARTIER FILIGREE
WATCH AND THE
STONE MOSAIC:
LARGE MODEL
TORTUE WATCH
FROM THE METIERS
D’ART COLLECTION.
East, Africa and India, and the whole experience has been one
cultural phenomenon!
THE CARTIER HERITAGE
Cartier comes with 170 years of history and royal ties. The Maison
has been around since 1847, and has a strong history with the
English royalty, the Russians and, of course, with the Indians.
The Cartier tiara that Kate Middleton wore, for her wedding
to Prince William was purchased by his great-grandfather and
loaned by Queen Elizabeth II to the Duchess.
THE CARTIER CRAFTSMANSHIP
You will always find an artist who is designing something new
at Cartier. The founders of Cartier were all artists as well as
merchants, and were as daring as can be! So, when you see a
Cartier jewellery piece, or a Cartier watch, you will notice the
audacity of the craftsmen in terms of creativity. That is signature
Cartier craftsmanship for you! All the pieces of Cartier jewellery
are handcrafted. It takes years for someone to be capable of
crafting a piece of high jewellery for Cartier. In our Parisian
Lapier Boutique, we have an in-house expert on high jewellery,
available to assist our clients.
Our Metiers D’Art collection, is a set of special watches, which
are manufactured using techniques that date back to the time
before the coming of Christ!
THE CARTIER ICON
There was a lady named Jeanne Toussaint, who was very close to
the Cartier family, and she was nicknamed The Panther, for her
strong personality. The Panther brooch, which was created in
the 1930s, became a tremendous success. Thereafter, the Panther
remained a timeless icon and a symbol associated with Cartier.
CARTIER FAVOURITES
While I own a lot of Cartier watches, I personally love the Tank
Americaine watch for men. I think it is one of the most elegant
watches by Cartier. I don’t own it, but I do love it. For women, I
think the Tutti-Fruity necklaces are absolutely beautiful.
WHAT TO LOOK FORWARD TO
• Our latest collection of high jewellery, titled Royal, which
was recently unveiled in Dubai, and is important to Cartier.
• The Cle de Cartier collection of watches that was unveiled
at SIHH 2015.
• The Paris Nouvelle Vague jewellery watch, the Amulette
which is a multicoloured piece of jewellery, inspired from
the same word which means something that brings you luck.
So that should be a popular collection among our Indian
clients.
• New variants in our fine jewellery collections – Love and
Juste Un Clou.